Comparison · Video models
MiniMax H3 vs Seedance 2.0
MiniMax H3 (Hailuo 03) or Seedance 2.0? 2K with stereo for less than Seedance 720p vs 4K, 480p and real-person references. Cost of 5 and 10 s.
Specs side by side
| MiniMax H3 | Seedance 2.0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | MiniMax | ByteDance |
| Type | Video | Video |
| Modes | text-to-video image-to-video first-last-frame reference-to-video | text-to-video image-to-video first-last-frame reference-to-video |
| Released | 2026-07 | 2026-02 |
| Duration | 4-15 s | 4-15 s or auto (-1) |
| Resolutions | 768p, 2K | 480p, 720p, 1080p, 4K |
| Aspect ratios | 21:9, 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, 3:4, 9:16, adaptive | 16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 21:9, adaptive |
| Reference images | up to 9 | up to 9 |
| Reference videos | up to 3 | up to 3 |
| Frames | first and last frame | first and last frame |
| Audio | native audio | native audio, on/off switch |
| Prompt length | up to 7,000 chars | up to 20,000 chars |
Price per unit and per clip
| Model | Variant | Rate | 5 s clip | 10 s clip |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MiniMax H3 | 768p | $0.161 / s | $0.804 | $1.61 |
| 2K | $0.261 / s | $1.30 | $2.61 | |
| Seedance 2.0 | 480p | $0.157 / s | $0.784 | $1.57 |
| 720p | $0.338 / s | $1.69 | $3.38 | |
| 1080p | $0.842 / s | $4.21 | $8.41 | |
| 4K | $1.72 / s | $8.58 | $17.16 |
Prices exclude taxes and are charged from your prepaid USD balance. Failed generations cost nothing.
MiniMax H3 and Seedance 2.0 take a similar set of inputs: 4-15 s, first and last frame, up to 9 images, 3 clips and 3 audio tracks as references. What separates them is price and resolution. H3 at 2K (2560x1440) costs less per second than Seedance 2.0 at 720p, and every clip has a stereo track. Pick Seedance 2.0 when you need 4K, cheap 480p or references with a real person's likeness.
Key differences
- Length. Both make 4-15 s. MiniMax H3 defaults to 6 s, Seedance 2.0 to 5 s, and only Seedance accepts
duration: -1(the model picks the length). - Resolution. H3 has 768P (1344x768) and 2K (2560x1440). Seedance 2.0 has 480p, 720p, 1080p and 4K.
- Audio. H3 always generates a native stereo track that you describe in the prompt, with no toggle. In Seedance speech, effects and music are on by default, and
generate_audio: falsegives a silent clip. In both, audio does not change the rate. - Frames and references. Both take a first and last frame plus up to 9 images, 3 clips and 3 audio tracks. In H3, images six to nine are billed separately and reference audio is free. In both, reference clip seconds are added to the bill. Seedance 2.0 on Jantaris accepts real-person references (with their consent).
- Aspect ratios and prompt. Both have 7 ratios including 21:9 and
adaptive. H3 needs an explicit ratio for text-only clips, and with a start image the ratio follows the image. Prompt: 7,000 characters in H3, 20,000 in Seedance. - Price for 5 and 10 s. Seedance 2.0 at 720p costs about 1.3 times H3 at 2K, and at 1080p about 3.2 times. Seedance at 480p and H3 at 768P cost almost the same. The same ratios hold for 5 and 10 s clips; the amounts are in the table above.
When to pick MiniMax H3
- A 2K shot with stereo sound for less than Seedance charges for 720p.
- A spoken line from text alone, with no start image.
- A character from several photos and a voice from a recording (reference audio is free).
- A 21:9 panorama for a music video or trailer.
When to pick Seedance 2.0
- A 4K or 1080p shot in standard dimensions.
- Cheap 480p drafts and silent clips for your own music.
- A real person's likeness from reference media.
- Prompts longer than 7,000 characters, or a model-chosen length.
Cost in practice
Both bill per second by resolution: from $0.161 per second is H3 at 2K, from $0.157 per second is Seedance 2.0 at 720p. Seedance in 4K costs about 6.6 times H3 at 2K, so 4K pays off only when you really need it. Remember the surcharges for reference clips in both models and for more than five images in H3. In Seedance, duration: -1 reserves funds as for 15 s. Price any combination in the AI cost calculator; all rates are on /pricing.
In my September 28 test MiniMax H3 scored 7.25/10: the coffee shot was weaker (6.5), but a hard Polish sentence came out with one error at the start. I tested it through another provider's API. The full Seedance 2.0 was not in the same task, so I do not set the scores side by side. Results are in the best AI video generator in 2026, H3 pricing in MiniMax H3 (Hailuo) API, and H3 against the newer Seedance in MiniMax H3 vs Seedance 2.5.
FAQ
MiniMax H3 or Seedance 2.0: which is cheaper at high resolution?
MiniMax H3. A second at 2K costs less than a second of Seedance 2.0 at 720p and about 3.2 times less than at 1080p. Seedance wins only where H3 does not go: 4K and 480p.
Can I turn off audio in MiniMax H3?
There is no toggle; every clip has a stereo track. If you need silence, mute it in your editor or use Seedance 2.0 with generate_audio: false.
Which one handles non-English speech better?
In my test MiniMax H3 spoke a hard Polish sentence with one error. I have not run the full Seedance 2.0 on that sentence, and Seedance 2.5 got the Polish sentence badly wrong, so for non-English dialogue I would start with H3.
Vendor examples
MiniMax H3
Seedance 2.0
Official examples from the model vendors, not our generations.